[Click image to enlarge]Hello everyone, My name is Tanja. My son Zion has been wanting a Beardie for a while and we done some research together before we brought Dagger “Dee” (can’t tell if it is boy or girl yet) home last Saturday. I thought it was enough research but there is so much more to it. I haven’t stopped reading and educating myself since to make sure our 4 month old Fancy Bearded Dragon is comfortable and healthy. Dee is in a 40 gallon tank ( starter kit from PetSmart). Since Saturday I have been to Petsmart 3 times already to ask a billion questions, get a house, water treatment, more crickets, a night heat light, a new lightbulb (a different 100w because I felt the one in the starter kit wasn’t working right) and ask a billion more questions LOL. Since Saturday Dee has pooped 1-2 a day - eat 3-5 crickets 3 times a day + dates, carrots, papaya + worm ( came in starter kit), kale and kiwi (a very small amount + chopped up really fine) - get fresh water everyday ( never seen Dee Drink) got a bath (will get another tomorrow) - slept the first 2 nights on the tree branch - got mist once - now hates me (fluffed up his beard), ran away from us and feel asleep in the corner of the tank. OMG I PRAY I DO EVERYTHING RIGHT. Hopefully I can get some help, advise and a patient individual that is willing to answer my questions.

First thing is dont believe everything pet smart employees tell you-- most do not have a clue as to what they are talking about and have never ever owned a bearded dragon--- next we need to see the set up for your tank --- it sounds like you have some stuff that 1 you dont need and 2 its gonna hurt the dragon---- if you have a colored nite light in the tank or on it ---get rid of it!!! We need pics of the tank and lighting --- the lighting in / on that tank is the most crucial for the health of the dragon --- we can most help you after that --- you have come to a good source for help here and can get lots of ideas and advice from others on the board--- Karrie

Ok great ! I will take a lots of pictures of the tank etc. when I get home tonight. After Dee freaked out (after I mist him) I turned the night heat light off to ensure he can calm down and get a good night rest. This morning he was no longer in the corner of the tank but laid on the side right on the glass.

As mentioned, please give us a rundown of the setup, but for now I'll just try to address some of the common mistakes with starter kits. First off, you don't need any lights during the night as long as your house doesn't gets below 65 degrees Fahrenheit (about 18 degrees Celsius), and even if it does get below that, you'll need a ceramic heat emitter since any light during the night is not good for your dragon. As well as disturbing their sleep cycle, colored lights (lights that are red, blue, purple, etc.) have been known to damage your dragon's eyesight as well. Some other things often wrong with starter kits are UVB and substrate. You do not want any loose substrates since beardies often lick things out of curiosity or when they eat they might accidentally ingest some of it, leading to impaction and even death. As for UVB, without it beardies can't digest their food and can get MBD (Metabolic Bone Disease). Your UVB needs to be a long tube light that stretches throughout the enclosure, but many kits will either leave out UVB entirely of just give you some curly bulb the size of the basking bulb. Also, please make sure that there is no plastic covering the bottom of the bulb if it is included, because UVB can't pass through it. If you know the brand and type of UVB, that would also be helpful since some can be to weak, especially if the UVB is on top of a screen. I hope this helped at least a little with getting your beardie's setup just right.

You can feed him his bugs in the morning and always leave a salad when you leave to go to work--- he will eat when hes hungry-- he looks young so his main diet is bugs at this point--- when you get home from work feed him his bugs again but make sure he has 2 hrs of lights on before you shut them off so he can bask -- he should be eating roughly 20 crickets per feeding --- or 6 -8 dubia roaches --- they are more filling and less hassle than crickets-- the dubias you can leave in the tank but not the crickets as they tend to bite the dragons--- dubias do not bite --- I would take the dubias out tho when shutting lights off --Karrie

Look on amazon-- search dubia roaches-- most suppliers offer free shipping-- you can keep them in a tote --10 gallon aquarium feed them carrots apples squash -- they last a long time- they don't stink or chirp--Karrie

[Click image to enlarge]Sorry for the late response but I had to feed the kids (yes I mean Dee and Zion my son).That's how his tank looks like right now.

[Click image to enlarge][Click image to enlarge][Click image to enlarge][Click image to enlarge] The bulb to the right came with the kit but I just bought the one to the right because I felt that the other one was too weak.[Click image to enlarge] Came with the kit [Click image to enlarge] This is how he looks now (took when I got home and before I feed) him/ her) PLUS he is shedding on his tail.Hope that helped you to help me

Yes you need to get rid of the coil UVB--- the basking bulb is fine but the coil needs to go-- you need to get one of these--Which UVB light should I use?The best UVB light is a ReptiSun 10.0 fluorescent tube HO (Or Arcardia 12% in the UK). Compact or coil bulbs do not emit the proper amount of UVB light for a bearded dragon, and should not be used. Other brands, such as the Zilla Desert Series and ReptiGlo have been known to cause eye problems and other health issues with bearded dragons, and should be avoided. The reason that some UVB lights (Zilla, ReptiGlo, coils/compacts, ect.) are considered dangerous is because the wavelength of UVB that they emit is shorter and more intense than the wavelength of the "safe" lights (ReptiSun, Arcadia). UVB lights should be replaced every 6 months. The T5’s are a strong bulb and only need to be replaced once a year – the T 8 every 6 months--- where as the T 8 are not as strong—they need to be placed inside the tank the T 5 10.0 bulb approx 10-11 inches from basking spot – the T 8 approx 8-10 inches from basking spot—the cover needs to be off the bulb for full effect of the UVB rays-- please replace as soon as you can--- what is the dome on the left side of the tank?Karrie

I will try to get it changed ASAP (have to wait on payday). The dome on the right was the night time heating lamp which i only used one time and won’t use no longer. So the brand of the UCB is right but it needs to be a bigger one, correct?

ZionDagger wrote:I will try to get it changed ASAP (have to wait on payday). The dome on the right was the night time heating lamp which i only used one time and won’t use no longer. So the brand of the UCB is right but it needs to be a bigger one, correct?

Hi and welcome!Yes, the reptisun is the right brand. You will have to buy a new hood fixture (not the dome) AND the uvb bulb that fits it. I thought they came with because they were so pricey, so I had to make another trip. You can find them cheaper online like on Amazon. I had to do the same with my adult beardie I had.

I got my baby a few weeks ago from Petsmart too. He was labeled as a "fancy" bearded dragon. Turns out there's no such thing. They just Jack up the price to make you think you're getting something special.

My local petsmart people have no clue what they are doing. I've asked them questions just to see if anyone is knowledgeable. I'm so happy to have found this community. They have helped me so much with my new baby.

You might want to invest in a Infrared Heat gun as well --- its going to give you the most accurate basking temps for him / her--- you can get them at Walmart Home Depot Lowes -- they are around $10--- also digital probes are good to have in your tank as well -- I keep mine on the cool side of that tank and use the infrared for the hot side of tank -- by the way your little guy is gonna have color-- so you did a get a fancy one-- most are a gray color --- Karrie

I m so happy to have found you all and the advise/ information that was provided to me and my Son. Lol it took a lot to get registered for some reason. I actually have an infrared gun but I don’t know where to point it to 🤷‍♀️. According to PetSmart he was supposed to be a fancy dragon. Yeahhh Our book just came from Amazon - The Bearded Dragon Manual (2nd edition).